As soon as Xu Jiang retreated from Lanling Palace, he saw a column of palace maids surrounded by a graceful woman with a phoenix crown hanging high and a curtain reaching the ground, coming from the corridor in front of the palace. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

"The old slave has seen the concubine." Xu Jiang saw that Shu Guifei, the mother of King Weiji, was coming, so he tied himself up and arched to one side.

"Father-in-law Xu, the emperor's dragon body is not safe, and he has not been a director of the court for more than a month. Today, the palace saw a lot of forbidden guards pouring into the inner garden, this is all your idea? Concubine Shu Guifei was holding a palace maid with one hand and a piece of champa in the other, obviously plump, but she made a weak willow supporting the wind. Her fair and delicate face was full of cold chills.

"How dare the old slave make his own claim? Last night, Yonganmen was a little uneven, and the old slave was also forced to do so. Xu Jiang replied neither softly nor hard.

"Ji'er just wants to enter the palace to visit the emperor, why, does it have to go through the approval of the chief manager Xu?" Concubine Shu frowned, slightly aggravating her tone.

"During this time, the emperor has decreed that in addition to the crown prince, other adult princes and princesses must be edicted before they can enter the palace." Although Xu Jiang didn't want to fight with her, he was silent on his face.

When Concubine Shu saw Xu Jiang move out of the emperor, she didn't bother to reason with him anymore, and swayed straight into Lanling Palace.

Xu Jiang passed through the long road in the middle, and after the Jiyue Hall was Yong'an Gate. Yong'an Gate is the most important gate of the Imperial Palace, which divides the entire palace into two: inside the Yong'an Gate is the Harem Inner Garden, and outside is the main hall complex of Chengde Palace, which is the place where the emperor and the ministers go to the court to discuss matters.

At this time, it was the depths of winter, and the palace was full of bleak scenes. There are still a few scattered leaves hanging from the thick ginkgo trees, and the erect branches pierce sharply into the sky.

Xu Jiang waited outside the Chengde Palace for a little time, and saw the Taishi Yu Wenjian and the Prime Minister Qi Yuwei coming out with the prince, Xu Jiang stepped forward to meet the prince, and then stood in front of the prime minister and the Taishi, announced the emperor's dictation, and led the two into the Yong'an Gate and came to the Lanling Palace.

"Father-in-law Xu, is Your Majesty feeling better these days?" Yu Wenjian, as a first-class master of the current dynasty, was also very polite to Xu Jiang.

"If you go back to the Taishi, the emperor's mind today is much more refreshing than in the past, so he ordered the old slave to come and announce that the two adults entered the palace to meet him." Xu Jiang bowed in front of him to lead the way, and turned back to answer.

"Prime Minister, Your Majesty only summoned you and me to meet you, could it be related to last night's incident? Otherwise, how can there be a reason not to summon the prince in major military affairs? Taishi smiled slightly at the stuffy gourd-like prime minister beside him, which was meaningful.

"Hmm~, Master Taishi, this, this holy will, hehe......" The prime minister seems to be a Tai Chi master.

It's not appropriate to speculate on the holy will, but what are you doing as this prime minister when you were afraid of wolves and tigers? Taishi was full of slander in his heart.

The Lanling Palace was very quiet, and it seemed that Concubine Shu had been sent away by Emperor Wei. After the three of them entered the inner bed and bowed, Xu Jiang snorted at several palace maids, sent them out, and took a soft pillow for Emperor Wei himself.

"The three of you are my most trusted ministers, there is no one else here, and the rivers and mountains of Great Wei are all in your hands! Prime Minister, can the affairs of the court be easy these days? "Emperor Wei has not asked about the government for a long time, so he is naturally worried about being forgotten by the ministers, and whether he can control the court situation is an indispensable sign of an emperor. After asking this sentence, Emperor Wei's heart was filled with a trace of bitterness.

Qiyu said: "Back to Your Majesty, a few days ago, the center received a report from the Xizhen Yasukuni Army, and the lord of the Xitu State led an army of 50,000 to prepare to attack the Loulan Kingdom. Queen Loulan sent an envoy to my Great Wei for help, and the ministers discussed with the prince and the ministers, and decided not to send troops to rescue. ”

"Oh?" Emperor Wei nodded, and then asked: "Yasukuni Gong Shu Peng raised troops to garrison Xiliang, and he was most concerned about the situation, what did he say in the newspaper?" ”

Qiyu said: "The Duke of Yasukuni has the same opinion as his ministers, but he mentioned in the report that the Western Turkistan State is an enemy country, and Loulan is a subject country, and if necessary, it is necessary to be prepared to send troops to rescue Loulan." ”

Emperor Wei laughed at himself: "The Western Turkist State must have learned the news that I have been ill for a long time, and wants to take the opportunity to cause chaos, split my territory, and attack my subject country." However, Yasukuni's opinion was very appropriate, and I approved his report. Da Wei still swept the snow in front of his house first, which is right. Taishi, I heard that King Ding's night broke into Yong'an Gate last night, but is there such a thing? ”

Taishi Yu Wenjian said: "The old minister only heard about it this morning. His Royal Highness King Ding wants to enter the inner garden, naturally no one can stop him, why do you have to break into the palace? The minister was puzzled. ”

"Old lady, that was the old slave's idea, and set up another guard in the inner garden. Without the emperor's call, except for the crown prince, other princes and princesses are not allowed to enter the inner garden without an edict. The king was determined, but he insisted on entering the palace last night. Xu Jiang explained.

Yu Wenjian frowned, and stopped talking a little, "In this way, how can King Ding rest?" He has always been aggressive, except for His Majesty, even the crown prince has no way to take him. ”

Emperor Wei was a little displeased, "I have already handed over the command of the forbidden army to General Wei Chi, and I am not worried about King Ding. ”

Yuwen Jian hurriedly apologized: "The old minister is stupid, Your Majesty is naturally worried about Marshal Yasukuni Gongshu." The Yasukuni Gong held the military power of the Western Army and was the most powerful supporter of King Ding. Although His Majesty has appointed the crown prince, King Ding and the Duke of Yasukuni have never given up the desire to compete for the crown. King Ding dared to break into the inner garden at night, he was testing His Majesty, and the minister thought that it was time for His Majesty to make a decision. ”

"The Yasukuni Gong garrison is in Xiliang, and there are many generals, if you are a little careless and provoke internal changes, how can I have a peaceful day in Dawei?" Prime Minister Qiyu hurriedly knelt down and said: "Even if Your Majesty has intentions, you must find the right time to make all preparations before you can start." Now that my Great Wei is surrounded by strong neighbors, the situation is not stable, and I can't get out of the half-point difference, otherwise I will move my whole body, and Your Majesty must not ignore it! ”

Yes, Qiyu's worries are not unreasonable. After all, it is unknown whether the Great Wei Emperor on the sickbed still has the ability to get rid of the footstone of the Yasukuni Gong, and whether the King of Ding is willing to admit defeat and give up the succession, and what kind of changes these factors will bring to the future political situation of the Great Wei.

"Raising tigers for trouble, raising tigers for trouble!" Emperor Wei pounded the bed and sighed, "If Murong was still here, how could I have fallen to such a point?" ”

When the Taishi and the prime minister heard Emperor Wei's words, they were also dumbfounded. This Murong Yi was Emperor Wei's beloved minister before his death, and he could rule the country when he got on the horse and when he got off the horse, and he was suave and intellectual. When Emperor Wei was still a prince, he followed Emperor Wei's side, gave advice to Emperor Wei, and finally assisted Emperor Wei to win the position of prince. Emperor Wei later married his sister-in-law, Princess Zhaoyang, to him. But God is jealous of the talent, four years ago, this Murong horse was hit by a stray arrow when he went south to attack North Vietnam, and died unexpectedly.

The long silence can only show that the current situation is very tricky. If Emperor Wei is seriously ill and an accident happens, it is natural for the crown prince to succeed to the throne in the name of the prince. But how could the powerful king give up? If there is a civil strife for the crown prince, the Great Wei will be doomed. Emperor Wei's physical condition is there, and the inheritance of power after Great Wei is a problem that must be faced in front of him.

"The old minister deserves death! The old minister has a way to draw salary from the bottom of the kettle, but the old minister doesn't dare to say it. As soon as Taishi Yu Wenjian's words came out, he fell on the ground and kowtowed.

"It's all this time, Aiqing can say whatever she wants, and I will forgive you for your innocence."

"Your Majesty, the king of Ding's struggle for the position of prince is known to the world. The Duke of Yasukuni was attached to King Ding in order to obtain greater benefits after King Ding seized the throne. Now that the crown prince has been a prince for many years, the old minister thinks that His Majesty might as well pass on the throne to the prince at this time and retire to the emperor. In this way, the crown prince can be the king, the king will lose the opportunity to compete for the throne, and the king and the prince of Yasukuni will die. ”

As soon as Yu Wenjian's words came out, the four of them were shocked, and the room was suddenly suffocated.

"Bastard! You—" Emperor Wei was furious for a moment, "you mean to let me abdicate?" This is what you call the method of drawing wages from the bottom of the kettle?! ”

Seeing that the situation was not good, Qiyu stepped forward and persuaded: "Your Majesty is angry, maybe the Taishi's original intention is not like this." At present, the emperor's dragon body is not safe, and the prince has been in charge of the country for more than a month, and entrusting the state affairs to the prince is also one of the ways. ”

"Hmph, it turns out that you are forcing the palace to come! Xu Jiang, do you have anything to say? Emperor Wei's face turned pale, and he forcibly held back his anger and said.

Xu Jiang knelt down behind Yu Wenjian and replied: "What the Taishi said is not the best policy, nor is it the way to be a minister. The old slave thought that the Duke of Yasukuni was deeply favored by the emperor, and he might not be determined to oppose His Majesty, but what was lacking at the moment was a way of checks and balances. Since Your Majesty's illness, the situation has been delicate, and we must not lose our minds for a while. ”

Emperor Wei's heavy body leaned back, gasped for a long time, and said, "You mean that Jiangmen lost his checks and balances when I was seriously ill?" I don't believe that there are hundreds of ministers in the DPRK and China, so there is no way to restrain the generals! ”

"How can a group of Wenchen withstand Sensen's swords and guns? To check and balance the gates, the old slave thought that the current situation must rely on external forces. Does Your Majesty remember the agreement you made with a person ten years ago? Xu Jiang wanted to speak and stopped.

"Ten years ago, you mean Guiguyang?" Emperor Wei was shocked.

"Back then, Guigu Yang, Murong Juma, and Yasukuni Gong Shu Pengju were all His Majesty's ministers. They have a deep affection for His Majesty and work together to assist His Majesty. Later, Guiguyang and Princess Zhaoyang fell in love with each other, but His Majesty married Princess Zhaoyang to Murong Concubine. Guigu Yang was disheartened, and in a fit of anger, he fled the rivers and lakes and became the sect leader of the Guigu Gate. His Majesty was not angry with Guigu Yang's betrayal, so the old slave sent a secret spy department to chase down and kill Guigu Yimen. But at the behest of Murong and Princess Zhaoyang, His Majesty still gave up the pursuit of Guiguyang. And swore with him that if His Majesty needs to be sent, Guigu will definitely help. ”

"You want me to ask for help from Guigu Yang?" Emperor Wei sneered, "Isn't it sad and lamentable? Guigu Yang is known as the Son of Cloth, and once his power infiltrates the court, it will be an even more terrifying force. Don't forget, at that time, our agreement also included the Guigumen people not to enter the public gate. ”

"Your Majesty, the current situation gives us not many options." Xu Jiang believes that the dragon and crouching tiger are hidden in the rivers and lakes, and the power is huge and can be used. Moreover, Guiguyang, Shu Pengju, and Murong Yi have served the emperor for many years, and were called the three heroes of Great Wei at that time. Using Guiguyang to deal with Shu Pengju is not a way of checks and balances.

Emperor Wei pondered for a long time and understood what Xu Jiang meant, that is, to use the peerless masters in the Guigu Gate to assassinate important figures in the Shu Pengju group, and using this method to cut off Shu Pengju's wings has an advantage, that is, Shu Pengju will not count this account on the imperial court, and it will not provoke a strong backlash from Shu Pengju.

"Well, now that the Western Turks are attacking Loulan, this is an opportunity, and I have changed my mind now. Loulan is our subject country, and we can't see death without help. I sent the commander of the Western Army, Yasukuni Gong, to lead an army of 100,000 to rescue Loulan. In addition, the Guigu Gate people were used to assist the secret spy department in controlling the court. ”

"The old slave obeys! Your Majesty, if you want to open the Ghost Valley Gate, Princess Zhaoyang will also ask Your Majesty to inform you. "Guiguyang has a deep relationship with Princess Zhaoyang of Great Wei, and Xu Jiang has to have some scruples.

Emperor Wei naturally knew that his sister-in-law, Princess Zhaoyang, had always been very urban, smart and sharp, and the Guigu Gate was where Princess Zhaoyang's heart knot was, so he nodded, "I know how to explain it to her, so you can do it with confidence." ”

When the prime minister and the prince saw that the emperor had no more edicts, they bowed and retreated.